Thinking of picking up a Mac Mini: 2.3ghz or 2.6ghz?

I'm thinking of picking up an i7 Mac Mini. Is the extra .3ghz worth it? I do mostly Lightroom and Photoshop work. I'm going to max out the ram and add a SSD drive myself. If I get the 2.6ghz I will have to wait a week for Apple to make it while I can just walk into the Apple store and pick up the stock 2.3ghz model. What do you guys think?

Intel just released new Haswell-based chips, which will eventually make their way to the mini. Although, I honestly do not know when these chips will make it to the mini, which has usually been the red-headed step child of the Mac line - usually laptops, then iMacs, then mini, then the Mac Pro.

May be by June for the laptops at least. Though if you can't wait that long, the SSD will make a bigger difference than 2.3 v. 2.6 GHz in the currently available minis, so I would rather spend the money on a bigger SSD.

I wouldn't wait for Haswell for the Mini. It gets updates very sparingly, and you'll be waiting quite a while.

CPU speed these days are rarely the limiting factor for most scenarios. You are more likely to be limited by disk I/O and RAM. Exceptions, of course, would be computationally intensive applications like bitcoin mining or scientific data analysis, but you're better served by a Mac Pro or custom hardware in those cases.

How about quad-core 2.3 vs dual-core 2.5? Is that noticeable for $200?

Absolutely. In my opinion 2 cores is the minimum for modern computing and four really is the sweet spot. Even if the apps you use aren't multi-threaded, having multi cores makes a huge difference in multi tasking.

There is a slim possibility that a Haswell i7 mini could have a discrete GPU as a BTO. The lower TDP of Haswell puts this right on the edge of what the mini case can handle.

Apple's been quite willing to change the Mini's case size though. The current unibody case is quite different from my '09 mini. They've been upgrading the mini roughly once a year. This last upgrade was one of the longer delays. Oct 2012 vs July 2011 and Jun 2010 for the one before. I could see Apple upgrading the Mini line in late fall this year. I'd expect Apple to want to use the mobile version of Haswell rather than the desktop version. Right now I think the release data for the good mobile chips are all Q3. (I've not kept up on Haswell so feel free to chime in if the release dates have changed) I think the ones that just got announced are GT2 and not the GT3e which I'd expect Apple to put in the Mini. (Of course I might be wrong - but I'd bet even if they do have GT2 versions that they announce them when the GT3e is available)

I'm not sure that one redesign in over 8 years is indicative of a willingness to redesign the computer's case. Granted, that's one more than we've seen in the G5/Mac Pro case in the 10 years those have existed, but Apple's certainly been conservative with these.

There is a slim possibility that a Haswell i7 mini could have a discrete GPU as a BTO. The lower TDP of Haswell puts this right on the edge of what the mini case can handle.

Apple's been quite willing to change the Mini's case size though. The current unibody case is quite different from my '09 mini. They've been upgrading the mini roughly once a year. This last upgrade was one of the longer delays. Oct 2012 vs July 2011 and Jun 2010 for the one before. I could see Apple upgrading the Mini line in late fall this year. I'd expect Apple to want to use the mobile version of Haswell rather than the desktop version. Right now I think the release data for the good mobile chips are all Q3. (I've not kept up on Haswell so feel free to chime in if the release dates have changed) I think the ones that just got announced are GT2 and not the GT3e which I'd expect Apple to put in the Mini. (Of course I might be wrong - but I'd bet even if they do have GT2 versions that they announce them when the GT3e is available)

Yes. I'm a bit worried about the pricing though. If the 4nxx series will match the same n 3nxx-series parts in price, the cheapest currently known GT3e mobile quad cores will probably be a solid $250 more expensive than the current BTO 2.6 GHz i7.

I would like to see a Mac mini with the desktop R-parts, but I fear the 65 W TDP might be a bit much.

I'm not sure that one redesign in over 8 years is indicative of a willingness to redesign the computer's case. Granted, that's one more than we've seen in the G5/Mac Pro case in the 10 years those have existed, but Apple's certainly been conservative with these.

Yes, but if the hardware demands it they change. The Mini is a nice entry level machine and if they are going to have a higher end one (still not clear of course - especially if there is a MacPro refresh) then they can change.

I think they'll stick with mobile parts and use the discrete video as now. I'm sure they'll have the lower end models though including probably a lowest end one with Ivy Bridge.

I'm not sure that one redesign in over 8 years is indicative of a willingness to redesign the computer's case. Granted, that's one more than we've seen in the G5/Mac Pro case in the 10 years those have existed, but Apple's certainly been conservative with these.

Yeah, case wise it was basically on the original PPC one up until that 2010 update. Course that's as recent as the MBA update and newer than the MBP (granted that's probably just an end of life design to be replaced by the retina model).

Spec wise the ballpark has basically been within a few months of the notebooks whenever the new generation of Intel chips come out, since the 2009 update at least (while 07-08 was Mac Pro-esque neglected status).

As for Haswell, I think mobile chips are set to come first, and iirc the timeframe is June-July, so yeah late Fall is likely, depending on how they spread out the various product releases this year. I'm not sure about the timeframe among the particular chips though, but in the past it's been the regular ones followed up by the low voltage parts (...I think). I semi expect the GT3e part to be the high end BTO option, with GT2 and GT3 being the regular low/high end parts if they keep a similar product/option matrix. I'm just hoping GT3e is an option at all, the TDP is right around the current quad core (45W or so).

As for Haswell, I think mobile chips are set to come first, and iirc the timeframe is June-July, so yeah late Fall is likely, depending on how they spread out the various product releases this year.

There are two mobile chip lines though with different discreet video, the GT2 and GT3e, the former coming next month and the later in Q3. As I said I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Apple wait until the GT3e is released in Q3 rather than coming out immediately with one based on the GT2. I might well be wrong though. It's possible to have one announced at WWDC (although perhaps not in keynote) but not available until July and then a refresh of the top end in October.

It's hard to say though. A lot depends upon what Apple does with the MacPro. I think they want to keep the Mini cheap enough to be the "get the interest" type of product. Already their prices have really crept up a lot. So I could see them waiting out Haswell entirely except for a high end BTO but not go for the GT3e at all and keep that for the iMacs.

It's hard to say though. A lot depends upon what Apple does with the MacPro. I think they want to keep the Mini cheap enough to be the "get the interest" type of product. Already their prices have really crept up a lot. So I could see them waiting out Haswell entirely except for a high end BTO but not go for the GT3e at all and keep that for the iMacs.

GT3e isn't that good. I can see it going into perhaps the bottom-end 21.5" iMac, and I suppose maybe the other 21,5" model, but for all the others it would likely be a performance degradation. Also worthy of consideration is the fact that the Iris Pro configurations will be BGA packages, which I am sure will show up in iMacs some day, but I think not with the 2013 revision. At least not across the line.

I'm somewhat intrigued, however, by the possibility of using the eDRAM purely as an L4 cache for the CPU and having a discrete GPU. I hope someone tests the performance of that, if it is indeed something that could be done.

I am about to buy a new machine but it seems a bad idea to do it before Haswell/WWDC. Either I live with the old Mac 17" i7 stuck with 8GB and build a Haswell gaming machine, or I get a new mini or better still an updated retina MBP. The Haswell integrated graphics may not impress those used to discrete chips but the HD4000 is already very acceptable for most tasks barring games and if whatever variant Apple might ship (and it is unlikely to be the top-spec part, on track record) turns out to be better that that's just a bonus.

As for Haswell, I think mobile chips are set to come first, and iirc the timeframe is June-July, so yeah late Fall is likely, depending on how they spread out the various product releases this year.

There are two mobile chip lines though with different discreet video, the GT2 and GT3e, the former coming next month and the later in Q3. As I said I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Apple wait until the GT3e is released in Q3 rather than coming out immediately with one based on the GT2. I might well be wrong though.

Think you're wrong (no offense) - Apple had no problem issuing the first MBP with a stop-gap processor (Core Duo) that would be dropped at first opportunity. Us earliest adopters of the new Intel machines have been stuck on 10.6, waiting more lush economic times before we can upgrade. Probably the biggest obstacle Apple faces on the desktop is that mass of 32-bit-only machines that are not-yet-replaceable.

Not replaceable? These machines must be 7 years old by now. My aging MacBook Pro from mid-2007 is fully 64-bit capable and runs Mountain Lion without trouble.

But you are right, you always have to be careful and avoid buying products with obvious limitations that are likely to go away in the next version. Like those core 1 CPUs or the original iPhone and the iPhone 3G with not nearly enough RAM, and of course the lack of 3G with the original iPhone.

GT3e isn't that good. I can see it going into perhaps the bottom-end 21.5" iMac, and I suppose maybe the other 21,5" model, but for all the others it would likely be a performance degradation. Also worthy of consideration is the fact that the Iris Pro configurations will be BGA packages, which I am sure will show up in iMacs some day, but I think not with the 2013 revision. At least not across the line.

I'm somewhat intrigued, however, by the possibility of using the eDRAM purely as an L4 cache for the CPU and having a discrete GPU. I hope someone tests the performance of that, if it is indeed something that could be done.

I'll hold off judgement on GT3e until I see some real world benches, but my suspicion is that they will use it as the base GPU on the 21.5" iMac and 15" MBP (they had an integrated graphics model of the 15" in 2009, so it is not entirely without precedent), as the only GPU on the 13" MBP and as the upgraded GPU on the mini.